Canada drops a dozen spots in FIFA rankings after poor World Cup showing
The Canadians have dropped from 41 to 53 in FIFA's December rankings after a disappointing World Cup performance
Days after the 2022 Qatar World Cup ended with Lionel Messi's rightful coronation as the greatest soccer player of all-time, leading Argentina to its third world title, the sport's governing body has released its latest rankings.
If you're a Canadian soccer fan, you might want to look away.
That's right. Despite qualifying and playing in their first World Cup in 36 years, Canada dropped 12 spots in FIFA's men's rankings, from 41st in October to 53rd on Dec. 22.
Canada actually experienced the biggest drop out of any nation, as highlighted by The Athletic's Joshua Kloke.
Directly above Canada is Romania, Greece and Burkina Faso, none of whom qualified for the 2022 edition of the tournament. Between ranks 53 and 41, only Saudi Arabia and Ecuador actually participated in this year's World Cup with Canada.
After a brave showing in their opening group stage match against Belgium, in which they dominated the Red Devils but ultimately fell 1-0, Canada failed to build on their momentum in the following two games. A 4-1 humbling at the hands of Croatia sealed their fate, while an inspired but fruitless performance in a 2-1 loss to Morocco sent John Herdman's men home with their pride intact.
Canada is the third-highest ranked CONCACAF team, behind Mexico (15, down 2) and the United States (13, up 3).
Canada's highest-ever ranking was 33rd in February, fresh off claiming big victories against El Salvador, Honduras and the United States in their qualifying campaign.
Topping FIFA's latest ranking is Brazil, who flamed out of the quarter-finals after a surprise loss to Croatia on penalties. World champion Argentina follows in second, with finalist France right behind. Belgium, despite miserably exiting Qatar in the group stages, has still managed to slot in fourth, two spots below their last rank.
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